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Archive for the 'The Workshop' Category

Strawberry Lorisuede Now Online

Thursday, April 29th, 2010

To order simply click on the picture of the style you like, select ‘Order Vegan’ and tick the Strawberry option when selecting your colour.


Coming Soon - new Vegan colour

Thursday, April 22nd, 2010

Lovely Strawberry Pink Lorisuede will soon be available online.
Soft suede finish in a deliciously summery colour & 100% animal free!

Shown here is the Willow Shoe with a Crepe Wedge sole, children’s styles look great in this colour too.

If you want to order something in Strawberry NOW,
just call our workshop on 01364 644036 to place your order.

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NEW Green Shoes ‘Lu Flux Collection’

Thursday, April 15th, 2010

WOW! An exclusive new capsule collection of styles -
part of an ongoing collaborative project with ethical fashion designer Lu Flux.

Lu Flux fuses vintage with modern, using traditional craft techniques such as quilting and knitting to produce bold, playful, colourful garments in sculptural forms.

Only salvaged, vintage and organic fabrics are used, upcycled into unique, refashioned pieces of style. In opposition to our modern throwaway culture something new comes from something old - reducing waste and excess production.

Shown at ‘Estethica’ during London Fashion Week, her ‘Dame and Knight’ couture collection is inspired by old British folklore and features creatures such as dragons and lions.

For the collection, Lu worked with Green Shoes to produce the the ‘Aslan’ Lion bag, Lion Boots and exuberant Floral shoes.

All are made from soft natural Eco-Tan leather, appliqued with upcycled leather and styled in a playful, retro way.

The Floral shoes are based on the Burry Man; a traditional Scottish ritual festivity where someone wears a costume covered in seedpods, flowers and ferns. The shoes are adorned with an abundance of flowers, made from leather offcuts, ensuring all of our beautiful leather hides are used and wastage kept to a minimum.

It has been wonderful to work on these 3 fabulous styles with her, and see them on the catwalk!
It took alot of time to both develop the styles over several months, and make the finished pieces.
Everything is hand made, from cutting and stitching each part of the lion applique to individually adding nearly 100 flowers to each pair of Floral Shoes!(each pair of boots, shoes or bag takes about 3 times longer to make than a standard style). The workshop was covered in a riot of colourful flowers and furry cowhide for quite a while!

We are looking forwards to working on more designs in the near future - a sandal soon ? - and we can’t wait to see what Lu is working on next. Her work is so gorgeous and quirky, a really unique designer in the ethical fashion scene.

At Green Shoes we also believe in creating everyday footwear that follows the same principles - saying NO to throwaway fashion, creating shoes and accessories designed to be worn and loved for a long time.

Floral Shoe - From Sketch to Catwalk

burry man
The inspiration! The Burry Man (enjoying a well earned whisky).

Colour Swatch small
Green Shoes Colour Swatch

Lu Floral Sketch
Lu’s Final Sketch

Floral Shoes 1

Lots of hard work & remakes… Then the finished shoe.

Floral shoe on model

On the model with Lu’s fabulous clothes!

Click here to visit Lu’s website and see the rest of the Knight & Dame Collection, plus previous years ‘look books’.


2010 Shoemaking & Bootmaking Workshop Dates

Monday, December 7th, 2009

Shoemaking Workshops - As featured in Devon Life!
Wow, a fantastic 2 page review by Deborah Martin in the November issue of Devon Life. Deborah came on one of our 1-day workshops and said she got a “delightful sense of achievement” from making her own Tansy pumps.

Our workshops are suitable for complete beginners and give you all the support, tuition and materials you need to make your own pair of simple shoes or sandals from our range in just 1 day.
You can choose any colours from a vast array at our workshop, and be as creative as you like decorating with applique, rivets, punched hole patterns…your shoes will be truly unique!

New for 2010, our 2 Day Bootmaking workshop gives you the opportunity to make a pair of lace-up or zip fastening boots from our range in 2 days.

Shoemaking Workshops
Saturday 24th April 2010 - 1 Place Available
Saturday 5th June 2010 - PLACES STILL AVAILABLE

Bootmaking Workshops -
Dates to be confirmed, please call or email and leave your details if you are interested in this course - we can then contact you with future dates.

Call us on 01364 644036 to book or for more information.


Multi-Coloured Shoes

Tuesday, September 29th, 2009

Retro shoe styles are everywhere at the moment, so we were inspired to make adult’s multicoloured shoes again- 25 years since we first made them!

Tremendously fun to wear, comfortable and stylish.
Try your own unique colour combination AT NO EXTRA COST when ordering before the end of November (£10 charge after this date).

Choose any mens or womens lace-up shoe or boot style, then select 2, 3 or 4 leather or vegan colours from our range (as wild or co-ordinating as you like!) and we can make them for you.

Some ideas for colour combinations!:
4 Colours-
Men’s wildly bright 4-colour Dartmoor shoe with Ocean front, Emerald outer side, Pumpkin inner side & Pistachio at heel (as shown below),
3 Colours-
Try different colours for front, back and sides (eg.Chamomile Boots in 3 co-ordinating shades of Grey, Sand & Chocolate brown)
2 Colours_
Boots all one colour with a flash of something bright at the heel, OR
Front & back in one colour with sides another shade
(eg. Teasel shoes in Black with White sides).

This special service is not yet available online! So to order, simply email or phone with your choice of colours, sole, size & width.

We also have limited edition speciality leathers such as patent, snakeprint or metalllic which make fabulous detailing on shoes - just ask for free samples.

Don’t forget, until the 16th of October you can also get free postage and packing on any adult shoe or boot order too.

Multicolour Shoe


Autumn shoemaking Workshops

Friday, August 28th, 2009

Our fun one day workshops are a unique opportunity to learn traditional skills. Suitable for complete beginners, we give you all the support, tuition and materials you need to make your very own pair of shoes or sandals, in just one day, to take home and love for a long time.

For unique style and total comfort, you use a natural crepe sole and then choose the colour, style and type of leather you want. Classes are kept very small so that there is at least one shoemaker to every four students to ensure shoes are well-made. Why not come with friends and have a day out with a difference!

The Green Shoes workshop is within a converted old mill on the banks of the River Dart which flows from the heights of Dartmoor. The closest town to the workshop is Buckfastleigh and the bohemian Totnes is just 4 miles away.

The next workshops will run from 10am to 5pm on these dates:
• Saturday 19th September 2009
• Saturday 7th November 2009

The course costs £150. This includes a full day of expert tuition, your own pair of simple, stylish shoes or sandals to take away and materials to decorate your shoes. Fairtrade tea and coffee, and delicious organic biscuits and cakes will be provided but students will need to bring their own packed lunch.

Each course has only a limited number of places. To book call 01364 644036.
Gemma copy 1Gemma Steph copy 1
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Summer Shoemaking Workshops

Thursday, July 9th, 2009

We will be running a new series of shoemaking workshops this summer in beautiful South Devon.

Our fun one day workshop is a unique opportunity to learn traditional skills. It is suitable for complete beginners and gives all the support, tuition and materials you need to make your very own pair of shoes or sandals, in just one day, to take home and love for a long time.

For unique style and total comfort, you use a natural crepe sole and then choose the colour, style and type of leather you want. Classes are kept very small so that there is at least one shoemaker to every four students to ensure shoes are well-made. Why not come with friends and have a day out with a difference!

The Green Shoes workshop is within a converted old mill on the banks of the River Dart which flows from the heights of Dartmoor. The closest town to the workshop is Buckfastleigh and the bohemian Totnes is just 4 miles away.

The summer workshops will run from 10am to 5pm on these dates:

• Wednesday 5th August 2009
• Wednesday 19th August 2009
• Wednesday 26th August 2009

The course costs £150. This includes a full day of expert tuition, your own pair of simple, stylish shoes or sandals to take away and materials to decorate your shoes. Fairtrade tea and coffee, and delicious organic biscuits and cakes will be provided but students will need to bring their own packed lunch.

Each course has only a limited number of places. To book call 01364 644036.

Leather samplesCutting out pic 1 2 3HammerLasting


July Events

Tuesday, June 30th, 2009

Visit the Green Shoes stand when we’re out and about this summer to see our new styles, try on footwear and accessories or order your handmade shoes.

We will be at:
Thursday 30th July
Totnes & District Agricultural Show, Great Court Farm, Berry Pomeroy, Totnes TQ96LB (Craft & Food Hall),

Friday 10th - 19 July 2009
Ways With Words Festival, Dartington Hall, Totnes, South Devon, TQ9 6EL

Ways With Words is a vibrant 10-day festival, a chance for those who read books to meet those who write them. The setting is glorious - Dartington Hall Gardens are wonderful to stroll around in the sunshine! We will be in the Ship Studio (off the main courtyard) for the whole festival.


Summer’s here!

Thursday, June 25th, 2009

Its been gorgeous weather here, plenty of opportunities to wear our lovely new Orchid sandals (style as shown in pic below)!
We’ve got them in gold, white, blue, red… really splendid with bright summer frocks - the Green Shoes team have been spotted at birthday trips the beach and enjoying a glass of Pimms at the lovely Hill House plant nursery & tearooms in Landscove!

We love being out and about doing proper summer stuff, including having a stand at the Totnes & District Agricultural Show, Great Court Farm, Berry Pomeroy, Totnes TQ96LB on Thursday 30th July in their fab Craft & Food Hall.
It’s a really great day out - everything from sheepdog trials with ducks to natural horsemanship, vintage cars, music and prize winning rare breeds. Hope to see you there!
Sandals


Ethical Footwear Retailer of the Year Award finalists!

Thursday, April 23rd, 2009

DRAP finalistFootwearLogo2009 copy 1
We are delighted to be shortlisted for Ethical Footwear Retailer of the Year!

This prestigious award goes to footwear specialists who create outstanding products and can demonstrate a strong commitment to ethical and environmental practices. The Drapers Footwear Awards celebrate the achievements of the best companies in the UK and Republic of Ireland, and as a small rural company committed to our craft we have been recognized as one of the 4 best ethical footwear businesses nationally alongside much larger companies such as Terra Plana (last years winners) and Beyond Skin.

Ethical production is at the heart of our business philosophy - we believe passionately in what we do here!
As the best quality materials are used, the products can be worn and loved for a long time, and you can be confident in knowing where and how your shoes are made. In the true ethical concept Green Shoes footwear and accessories can be completely resoled and repaired - making the products much more sustainable.

A big thank you to all our customers who have chosen to wear Green Shoes over the last 26 years! Awards in this category exist because enough people support businesses like ours and make positive, ethical choices that make a big difference to our culture and our environment.